LittleMissMagic's 2014 8-Day Carnival BREEZE S.Caribbean Cruise - A Photo Review!

Subscribing.

Loving your review and pics. i cant wait for your Disney review also as I have narrowed down a cruise next spring between the Breeze and Disney. We have a 14 year old and 5 year old at time of sailing. I love the breeze southern itinerary and the price and that Carnival has so many more dining/entertainment options. However, we know that Disney doesn't slack on service and quality, but the price is really hard to overcome and I'm not sure how much fun my 14 year old would have onboard. Anywho, sorry to ramble, again really enjoying your review!

Yay, another LittleMissMagic trip report! I just got off the Breakaway today, was catching up on my subscribed CC threads, and happily saw your review in progress from your signature. I especially like reading your reviews on lines I haven't sailed yet, such as Carnival.

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

Great Review!! We were going to choose the Breeze for our "free" cruise, but then thought it's not free if I have to purchase airline tickets, pre-cruise hotels, etc.

So we picked the Splendor out of New York, I can literally roll out of bed and be at the pier!

Looking forward to the rest of your review!

I'm only on page 2 and hooked!!

Love your photos, and the way you tell a story.

Thanks for taking the time to put this all together for us.

Oh, and please give Max a high five too, the special flavor he adds to your travel and write up does not go unnoticed! :D

My husband and I love your reviews, looking forward to more of this one, we have never been on Carnival.....Cindy

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Really enjoying your review -- we will be on the Breeze in September.. Can't wait !! :D

Love your review I can't wait for more. We sail on the Breeze next March. :D

Hello, everyone!

I apologize for falling behind on my review. Between Flickr changing formats (it's still not working with my Chrome... but seems to be doing okay with Safari) and my weekend in Los Angeles, I'm not as far along as I had hoped to be. I am really appreciating all of your comments! It was nice to come back to so many messages!

Max's first cruise was the Norwegian Epic in the Mediterranean. Mediterranean cruises are quite different from Caribbean cruises in that guests can embark and disembark in several different ports. Since we embarked in Civitavecchia (most embarked in Barcelona), our muster was quite relaxed and just the 40 or so of us who had embarked that day met in the theater where we were told what to do in an emergency and then they showed us a slideshow presentation about everything the ship had to offer.

I was a little disappointed that Max still didn't get to experience a "true" muster with life jackets. Will he ever? Most cruise lines seem to be doing away with that. Princess had us bring our life jackets to muster where we met in indoor venues, but the last time I remember lining up at our muster stations outside of the lifeboats was on the Monarch of the Seas in 2012.... and we didn't even have our life jackets with us at the time.

Max and I mustered in the Blush dining room which was one floor above us and also where we were assigned to dinner. I was shocked that there was absolutely no check-in of any sort. At no time during the drill did they take our names or our folio numbers or our stateroom numbers. They never scanned our cards or checked us off of a list. All they did was put the appropriately labeled wristbands on the children that attended. This would be a very easy drill for passengers to skip out on because we were never accounted for, and there was no mandatory make-up. They even made an announcement as most of us were gathered in the dining room - "To the passengers on the pool deck, in the hot tubs, and on your balconies... come to muster. We can see you!" Ummm.... why are you making an announcement over the loudspeaker? Carnival should have crew members clearing these areas, and they should be taking note of who is there and enforcing a make-up muster. Safety is something that I value greatly, and I am absolutely shocked that with the number of incidents that Carnival Cruise Line and Carnival Corp have had in the past two years that they aren't enforcing muster.

Now off my safety soapbox and on to the sail away party...

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Miami is a beautiful port to sail out of. Definitely a gorgeous skyline.

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

I got my sail away drink from Blue Iguana Tequila Bar, and Max went over to Red Frog Rum Bar. The service and number of bartenders at the bar was definitely improved for the sail away party.

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

The party is cutely named, "Adios, Miami.... Hello, Fun!"

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

The pool deck was packed with party people. This is the best attended sail away party I've been to lately.

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

The entertainment crew (in the red polos) on the Carnival Breeze is great. They are all really energetic and encourage people to get involved.

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

After watching Miami Vices be beautifully constructed in glasses split red/white all the way down earlier that day at the aft pool bar (yes, while I was attempting to purchase the Coke package), I had to order one. I was disappointed that mine was not crafted with precision and instead red poured over white.

Adios, Miami! by vshingl, on Flickr

Max discovered Guy's Burgers and had to give one a try. He wasn't a huge fan of the fries, but the burger was delicious.... though lacking a bit in presentation.

I have been timed out of my edit, but I forgot to mention that pre-muster, Max and I were finally able to purchase the soda package. You can insert this rant before my muster rant.....

We decided to purchase the soda package in the casino bar which was open. It was still surprisingly busy and understaffed. We sat down at tables waiting to be served... and then I realized that there was only one bartender working and had to go up to the bar. The soda package is called "Bottomless Bubbles" which I find to be a ridiculously silly name. I'm all about cute and creative naming, but there comes a time when cute can become confusing and things should just be named for what they are. If you told me that you purchased the Bottomless Bubbles package, I might think that included soap and a rubber ducky. (Perhaps I should also note that I hate it when restaurants give their food items ridiculously stupid names because I feel like an idiot ordering a "Joey Bag of Donuts" or a "Homewrecker"... just give me a burrito!!) I suppose they felt the need to distinguish between their two drink packages after they added the alcohol package (called Cheers! which is not nearly as content-confusing or embarrassing to order), but a name like "Bottomless Bubbles" makes me think endless champagne rather than soda. I digress...

When I ordered this absurdly named soda package, I remembered having read that Carnival uses cans rather than fountains to fill the soda. What I did not know is that Carnival takes room temperature cans - some already open and have been sitting there for who knows how long - and pours them over ice. And it's not a pour that a normal person would take with the care of trying to retain as much carbonation... or bubbles... in the soda as possible. No - the bartenders flip the can completely upside down in attempt to fill the glass as quickly as possible. Max and I are Diet Coke Divas. And we were not happy. Perhaps I am only bitter about the name "Bottomless Bubbles" because our Diet Cokes CONTAINED NO BUBBLES!!!!

Note: I am a Diet Coke addict. As is my boyfriend. As is my roommate. Ask anyone I know, and they can tell you - don't mess with Victoria's Diet Coke.

For dinner, we had the second seating at 8:15 PM in the Blush dining room (it was our only option, as early seating and anytime were unavailable when we booked). I found this to be the more attractive dining room as it had more elegant chandeliers and the beautiful aft view. Unfortunately, we were in a seating situation very similar to that on my recent Royal Princess sailing. Our table was 502 which was a table for two and shoved in the corner by the emergency exit door and on the other wall of a work station. The tables blocking us into this corner were occupied by a large family or traveling group of some sort.... they all knew each other and spoke loudly across tables. When they weren't in the dining room (we were rather glad that this family missed a few nights), we had the joy of listening to the constant buzz of the automatic revolving door.

This was my view...

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

Guess I can't complain too much.

The first night, I was worried about the service for the rest of the week. We didn't get the normal introduction of head waiter or assistant waiter. He just came and took our order. Throughout the first night, I believe we were only attended to by our head waiter, and I could tell that he was strewn very thin across tables because our interactions were very brief. Max and I started making plans to perhaps eat sushi one night or try out the steakhouse.

We did delay our meal a bit by ordering the wine package. We got the minimum package, which I don't think is that great of a deal. Looking back, we probably would have done just as well just ordering a bottle as we wished. However, I do find it incredibly painful to purchase a 750-ml bottle for $26 when you can purchase a liter of the same wine for $10 at the grocery store. So my brand to avoid this week was Yellowtail (on the Princess cruise, it was Woodbridge), though I'm sure the other wines were just as poor of a value. Experience, Victoria... you're buying experience.

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

Max picked this Pinot Grigio and loved it. We ordered it twice that week. I'll be sure to look for it at Total Wine & More.

For a starter, I chose the fruit sampler offered on the everyday menu.

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

Max had some sort of shrimp cocktail.

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

We had the same entree...

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

Though Max requested two macaronis -

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

And he also ordered the jumbo shrimp. This is on the everyday menu, as well. He ordered it a couple of times throughout the week.

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

Max went for the chocolate melting cake -

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

And I had some sort of chocolate cake with ice cream filling...

Dinner by vshingl, on Flickr

I wish I recall the name, because it was the best dessert I had all week.

What a small world we live in! As someone who lives in Clemson, its nice to see someone from the same town on here...however...Go Gamecocks!

After dinner, we went to the adult comedy show at the Punchliner Comedy Club (Limelight Lounge). It was standing room only... these shows are incredibly popular. This night was a preview of the two comedians they had on board for the first part of the week, Just June and Tom Foss. We weren't fans of Just June - both found her to be vulgar rather than funny. Her humor just didn't really apply to us. Max thought Tom Foss was hilarious. I thought he was just okay at the preview show.

Punchliner Comedy Club by vshingl, on Flickr

We then headed to Liquid Nightclub. It was the electric white night, so they were passing out glow bracelets. Max really enjoyed the venue and the drinks menu. It was a fun atmosphere..... our only complaint is DJ JonCarlos. He stinks. I don't know why he was ever hired or how he is maintaining his job.

Max is the music guru, so I'm going to share his opinion on the matter:

I wanted to like him. He looked like he was going to be a good DJ, and he might start out with a great song. And then he'd kill it. Not only was he terrible at blending songs and leading one into another, but he would play a popular song that would get everyone onto the dance floor, and then he would kill the vibe by playing some crappy slow song or a song that no one knew. He didn't understand how to create a mood and maintain it, and I don't think he was up-to-date on what songs are popular right now and what songs people like to dance to.

Liquid Nightclub by vshingl, on Flickr

Also, I should mention that it was that night that Max discovered the wonders of room service. I was long asleep, but he was flipping through the television and decided to check out the room service menu. He saw the prices were "No Charge" and decided to order a grilled cheese to the room. A grilled cheese which was amazing, he said.

What a small world we live in! As someone who lives in Clemson, its nice to see someone from the same town on here...however...Go Gamecocks!

Hi, neighbor! Max can relate to you as someone who lives in the rival team's town as he has been co-oping in Columbia. He doesn't enjoy living with all of those Gamecocks... I can see how Tigertown might be a little rough! :D

Glad to see you are back, now I have something to read at work! Born and raised and went to college in Clemson... Love my Tigers!

Subscribing ... :-)

Fab review, thanks ...

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Sunday, March 16, 2014 - Fun Day at Sea

We had set our wake up call and were up early, ready to fight for deck chairs. And then Max remembered.... he didn't want to risk getting a sunburn the day before he had to scuba dive. A sunburn would be really uncomfortable with a wet suit and scuba gear. Me... I wanted to get my tan on because I was sick of people mistaking me for Casper. But Max's logic did make sense, so we decided to refrain from laying out in the sun and instead do other things on the ship.

The free drink is really the only thing you get as a red VIFP member. No more welcome back party for people who have completed less than 5 cruises (or have less than 25 cruise points). I guess I can't complain too much... I did get a free cabin. :D

Don't let the dirty window fool you. It was quite sunny outside.

We did appreciate the pivoting television. Not only could you angle it towards the bed, but you could still store things behind the TV.

After eating breakfast in the Lido buffet, Max and I started our day outside on the Promenade deck. Though he didn't want to lay out on the sun, he did agree to the cantilevered hot tubs. After finding one that wasn't packed with people, it turned out to be just luke warm. Perhaps that is why it had turned into a kiddie pool with three children splashing about in it.

We went to the atrium bar for bubble-less Diet Cokes.

Then went back to the stateroom and decided to clean up and then eat sushi for lunch.

Max loves sushi, so it didn't matter that the sushi was an additional charge because it was worth it to him. The sushi at Wasabi on the Norwegian Epic was also an additional charge, but I found their prices more reasonable at $2-4 per roll. The prices at Bonsai Sushi are comparable to those at your neighborhood sushi bar.... that is if you live in a rather affordable location such as Upstate South Carolina.

I loved Bonsai's logo design. It was simple and clean.

We both ordered the miso soup. Well, they brought mine out long before Max's. Max was getting frustrated because he thought they had forgotten his soup. It turned out that they just brought him his after his sushi. Weird. Service there wasn't the best and we had more bubble-less Diet Cokes.

Max loved his sushi rolls, though. That made him much happier.

I ordered the Bento Box.

The presentation was nice, but I wasn't a big fan. The California roll was rather dry (I don't like California rolls too much to begin with), and I didn't really like the salad. I should have gotten the sushi boat instead.... it came in a boat. Whyyy did I pass up that opportunity?

Max loved it, though. He asked if we could come back, and I told him yes, probably. He wanted to go there for dinner one night. Sure, Max!

We never made it back.... there were too many other options like the C-Side BBQ and Seaday Brunch to check out that we never returned. Max enjoyed the sushi, though, and I enjoyed the graphics.